


Pieces

by CaptainoftheRirenShip



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Amnesia, Angst, F/F, Fluff, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, tragic backstories
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-26
Updated: 2018-09-01
Packaged: 2018-11-19 04:33:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,779
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11305761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaptainoftheRirenShip/pseuds/CaptainoftheRirenShip
Summary: Gems of different types don't fuse. Especially not corrupted gems. Corrupted gems also never come back from corruption. Pearl and Rose have always been aware of this, but a corrupted ruby-sapphire recovered from the field completely scatter their findings, and seem to act as a beacon for more research-shattering events.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So . . . I may or may not have gotten into Steven Universe.
> 
> updated 02/03/18 for more details and a little epilogue (?)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> edited 12/14/17

 

_"Is . . . this okay?"_

_"Yeah. It feels . . . right. Like . . . "_

_"Like I belong here."_

.-.-.-.-.

"What is that? A . . . a peridot, maybe? And how many amethysts is that, now?"

"Too many."

The pearl sighed, cupping one of the pink bubbles in her hands. The tiredness was evident in the dark circles sunk into her pale skin, and how her pale pink pixie cut hair was ruffled and disorderly. Her svelte thumbs delicately traced an outline on its smooth surface in the shape of the small green crystal inside.

"I still can't believe they did this. How could they?" Pain flashed in her eyes. "To everyone. Everyone that served them, worshiped them. Even their own Pearls . . . "

Rose reached forward, large, gentle fingers wiping tears from her old friend's eyes. Contrary to Pearl, Rose Quartz was as stunning as always, large and beautiful and elegant, her pink curls tumbling over her shoulders and cascading down her back, ever untouched in the battles she fought. Her kind eyes betrayed her exhaustion and sadness, but she was as strong as ever, hands and voice steady.

"I don't know," she admitted honestly, staring sadly at the bubbled gems. "Selfishness. But it's alright," she added. "This helps them. Protects them. And soon, we'll figure out how to fix this. Them."

"Do you really think so?"

"I know so." A fond smile formed on pink lips, and Rose gazed at the amethysts she'd brought back. "Look at how beautiful this one is."

"She is rather shiny," Pearl relented, a smile quirking her lips as well. The emotions overwhelming her left her sounding a tad congested.

"I bet she's the biggest, strongest amethyst around," Rose continued, tapping the bubble softly. "You're going to be such a great friend when we figure out how to purify you."

"Alright, alright. I'll get these in with the others." Pearl took command of the spheres, waggling her fingers in farewell at her friend. "Good luck out there. Come back to me in one piece, okay?"

"Of course, my Pearl." But just as Rose was leaning in to press a kiss to her cheek, the large gem straightened abruptly. "Oh! I nearly forgot!"

"Forgot?" Pearl inquired curiously, eyebrows lifting. "Did you find something interesting?"

In response, Rose held out her hands, and two bubbles appeared above them. Pearl cocked her head, observing them with eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"I suppose sapphires are fairly rare, but we have plenty of those by now. And rubies are  _everywhere._ What are you trying to show me, Rose?"

"But they're special," the tall gem breathed, bringing them close to her face in fascination.

"What makes you say that?" asked the smaller gem, trying to hide her impatience.

"They were  _fused."_ Before Pearl could express her awe, Rose continued, "Corrupted, but still fused. We've never seen one fused! Does that mean they were fused when they became corrupted?"

Pearl, shaking off her shock, asked, "But why would they have been fused? Different gem types  _never_ fuse - well, I mean,  _we_ fuse, but still - it's frowned upon. Or, well, was. And a lowly ruby with an aristocratic sapphire? They would have shattered the poor thing."

"It's not uncommon for aristocrats to have ruby guards," Rose mused.

"But to be that close? To care enough for one another to fuse?"

"Anything is possible." Rose passed the bubbles over to Pearl, a tender look on her face. "Keep them close to each other."

"Do you think it'll do anything?"

"It might. It's worth a try."

Pearl sighed softly, then offered a smile. "I trust your judgment."

Rose smiled wide in return, sweeping her friend in a huge hug. "I can always count on you to entertain my crazy ideas!" She kissed the thin pearl's cheek, laughing softly. "Thank you."

"You know I can't resist your charm," Pearl teased lightly, trying to ignore the soft blue blush tingeing her pale cheeks. "I'll hold down the fort here."

"And I'll go find some gems to bubble," Rose replied brightly.

.-.-.-.-.

Pearl's laboratory was plagued with a sense of unrest and discomfort from the moment Rose brought in the fusion.

She could feel it constantly, nagging at her subconscious. It was making her uneasy. She couldn't work on her experiments; she had decided she was in no condition to fight the corrupted gems for her tests, and she couldn't focus on any of her research or theories. She couldn't go out in the field for more information unless she wanted to risk corruption.

Pearl was restless, endlessly so, and it was driving her up the damn walls. What was creating this atmosphere? What was making her so distressed? She didn't understand.

"How are things going?"

"They aren't going at all," Pearl groaned, leaning back in her chair and rubbing the heels of her palms against her eyes. "I can't work like this. Can't you feel it?"

"From the moment I walked in." Rose made her way to the bubbles, eyes passing over the various specimens.

All sorts of shapes and sizes of gems were present. Rose passed through them, pushing aside several in her search for the cause of their unrest. Jasper. Agate. Carnelia. Lapis. All moved aside as she wandered, eyes half lidded, feeling rather than seeing. Finally, she stopped dead.

"It's the fusion," she said, wonder in her tone and eyes. "Pearl - their bubbles! They're pressed right up against each other!"

Pearl blinked, swiveling in her chair. She scooted back and stood, moving to join her friend.

"The ruby and sapphire?"

Surely enough, she could see them from there; the two pink bubbles were touching, misshapen from the pressure they were exerting to stay close. Were it not for the barriers between them, they would be touching.

"Yes, it's amazing! I've never seen a bubbled gem do this before!"

Pearl watched from across the room as Rose reached out to touch the two of them, her fingers outstretched and eyes wide with excitement. The atmosphere in the room grew almost heavier as her fingers closed the distance between her and the bubbles, tension so thick in the air it was practically palpable.

A sense of dread came over the pale gem. Pearl didn't know what it was - there was no reason to be afraid, obviously, as bubbled gems were completely dormant and could not do anything to them - but she knew something was  _wrong._ Bubbled gems weren't conscious. They shouldn't be moving. She couldn't let Rose touch those gems.

Pearl found herself sprinting, desperate to stop the contact, desperate to prevent this unknown catastrophe.

"Rose, wait! Don't!"

There was no way she could have traveled that distance quickly enough, and she recoiled in horror when she heard Rose's weak cry. Pearl had never heard so much agony laced in her voice - not even when she'd lost that human lover of hers. Pearl skidded to a halt and fell to her knees beside her friend, eyes roaming all over her form to check for some injury or harm. She gasped loudly when she saw the tears shimmering in those big brown eyes, nausea overwhelming her like a punch to the gut. It had been thousands of years since she'd seen Rose cry.

"Rose, are you okay?!"

"They're hurting so much," the pinkette whispered, voice cracking slightly. One of her thumbs stroked over the surface of the bubble encasing the ruby. "They're in so much pain, Pearl . . . "

"They're putting  _you_  in pain!" Pearl responded almost indignantly. The nerve of these stupid, corrupted gems, hurting her Rose! Oh, why couldn't she have moved sooner and just prevented this? "You need to get away from them!"

"I can't! They need me!" Rose trembled, holding the bubbles to her chest. Her eyes were wide like a doe's, terrified, mourning. Guilt stabbed at the paler gem's heart. "They need help, Pearl. They're lonely, they're hurting . . . "

"You can't help them!"

"I have to!" Another wave of pain coursed through her, and she gasped out, tears spilling forth. "I'm right here, please . . . don't be afraid, please, you're not alone . . . I'm right here."

Pearl rested a hand on Rose's shoulder. The pain was so heavy in Rose's heart, so strong Pearl could feel it, too. Tears pricked at her eyes and she pleaded, "Rose, this isn't good for you. You can't stay with them."

But Rose wasn't listening, wasn't even looking at Pearl. She observed the captured gems with gentle, mourning eyes, lip trembling. And then a soft intake of breath signaled understanding.

"They want each other," she whispered in realization, then corrected herself, "They  _need_  each other." Almost frantically, she pressed the bubbles together once more, voice cracking in desperation. "Look! She's right there! You're right next to one another . . . please, don't be sad anymore . . . "

The heartbroken note in Rose's voice had Pearl's throat swelling with shared grief. She closed her eyes and counted to ten, controlling the waver in her voice. "You have to go, Rose. You can't help them."

Rose finally released the bubbles, a single tear dropping onto one of them. It rippled above the sapphire and disappeared. They lingered where they were left as she stood, wiping her tears away. She laced her fingers with Pearl's, obediently following her out of the room.

If they'd looked back, they would have seen the sapphire pressed against the edge of the bubble, seeming to watch them go.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Entirely too short for the wait, but have this anyways.

_"A challenger approaches!"_

Pearl's gem shone brightly, and slowly, gracefully, she pulled her spear into existence. The metal was cool, and fighting position natural - stance wide, body low. Her eyes never moved from her opponent.

A soft chuckle accompanied a smirk, and Pearl's eyes narrowed. "You have already made a mistake in challenging me!"

Her feet left the ground as she darted forward, thrusting her spear in front of her.

"Pearl?"

She skidded to an abrupt halt. The hologram before her stuttered and a light static overcame the Pearl copycat, shimmering like white noise as Pearl herself nearly dropped her spear. She pivoted quickly, eyes wide as a deer caught in headlights, a soft cyan blush consuming her entire face. She couldn't make eye contact with the quartz soldier, instead idly rotating her weapon in her hands. She looked anywhere but that soft smile, feeling her cheeks heat dramatically.

"R-Rose! I, uh . . . I-I was . . . this is embarrassing."

"Training at a time like this?" Rose's laugh was pure, the tinkling of a bell. Pearl went a deeper shade of blue, her spear dematerializing as she scratched the back of her head.

"Well, one should never slack on one's skills . . . "

"It reminds me of the sparring from those movies Greg would show me." Rose walked around the holo-Pearl, noting the similarities and differences between it and the real thing as Pearl's blush faded and she looked away with a mild huff.

"You had a lot of fun back then," she commented quietly, forlornly.

Greg again. Greg this, Greg that. She hated hearing about him, no matter how many years passed or how much Rose loved him. Couldn't she see that? Couldn't Rose understand? The jealousy, the loneliness? What Greg had done to her? To the both of them? The hologram shimmered out of existence, and Pearl turned away, allowing her spear dematerialize.

Rose was never one to let Pearl brood. "So did you, apparently," she said, amused. "You didn't come up with that cheesy dialogue on your own."

Flushing brightly once more, Pearl said loudly, "I have  _no_ idea what you're talking about! I haven't seen any of those silly samurai movies! And the action was sub-par!"

Rose laughed brightly as Pearl realized what she'd just revealed. Turning her back on the other, Pearl said in a very disgruntled tone,  _"Anyways."_ Taking a slow, calming breath, she glanced at Rose from the corner of her eye, hiding her blush. "What did you come here for? Surely not to see me spar with myself."

"What if I did?" Rose countered in a sweet hum, though she didn't press further on the subject. Her expression shifted ever so slightly, becoming more serious, and she said, "Things are getting strange out there. The corruption . . . the gems are agitated."

Pearl turned fully toward her now, her pettiness forgotten in the face of something serious. "Agitated? Moreso than usual? Why?"

Rose turned her gaze downward, contemplative, concerned. "Something is wrong. Something in the air. I think . . . the corruption. It's changing."

"Disappearing?" Pearl asked hopefully, but she knew better. Rose's shake of the head just enforced that. She pursed her lips thoughtfully and looked to the floor as well, hands on her hips. "What can we even do about it?"

"Investigate," Rose said simply. They looked back up at the same time, eyes meeting, and a soft smile crossed those pink lips. Pearl found her cheeks heating just a little. "It would be unwise to go alone. Come with me?"

It took so much self restraint - more than Pearl thought she had - to be calm when she said, "Of course."

Her heart raced. It had been so long since she'd gone outside, so long since she was with Rose.

They stepped out of her dojo and to the warp pad just outside the door. Rose's forcefield held strong, the soft pink shimmer visible against the swirling fog so close to the destroyed house they stood in, and Pearl's heart swelled with sentiment. Rose worked so hard to keep her safe from corruption. It exhausted her, she knew; Rose was never at her full potential with the barrier consistently draining her, and many a time, Pearl insisted it would be better to simply take it down and let her stay in her lab, but Rose refused to keep her that locked down.

"Shall we?" Rose asked spiritedly, offering her hand, and Pearl nearly cried.

She took the outstretched hand, and Rose's smile was enough to soothe the emotion tightening her throat. If they were in company, the way their eyes met might have embarrassed Pearl, but like this, all alone, she allowed herself to be enraptured by the beauty before her.

It started out with Rose raising their hands and spinning Pearl, and then a soft hum started in the larger woman's throat. The song they both knew weaved in the air around them, and Pearl's voice joined her. Slow turns, spins, weaving around the room. They had no need to prolong their waltz, but it had been so long since they'd done this.

Rose dipped her low, and they were so  _close_ , foreheads pressed together, smiling in spite of themselves. Pearl could feel the tug of fusion pulling at her, and she embraced it. The gem on her forehead shone brightly and something stirred in her gut at the realization of how little space remained between her and Rose.

The light was brighter, their lips were so close, and just before they were enveloped, Pearl leaned up and kissed her.

Then they were light, shapeless, formless, twining together and materializing once more. Distinctly, before Pearl's consciousness was submerged and melded with Rose's, she heard a baffled,  _what?_

And then Rainbow Quartz formed, giant and powerful and . . . confused.

She held out one hand, and the pink forcefield around the house dissipated slowly around her while her other hand went to her mouth, her fingertips gently probing at her lips. A soft smile crossed them a second later, and she ran her fingers through her pink-streaked blonde hair, grinning like a fool.

"Well, then," she said to herself, both spear and shield materializing in her hands, "let's get down to business."


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IDK ABOUT YALL BUT IM S C RE ECH IN G ABOUT LAPIS'S SONG OHHH H HMHY GOD D D
> 
> i have ideas for this fic, but nothing is really concrete. we're just gonna roll w the punches and see how it goes !
> 
> also, longer chapter, yw

_" . . . Ruby? My Ruby . . . "_

_Her voice was beautifully solemn, echoing around the endless chamber. The floor was an endless mirror of water, but she couldn't see anything. She was blind. All she heard was that voice, calling out to her, strikingly familiar but impossible to put a name to. A gentle croon, heartbreakingly sorrowful, begging for a response, for someone to reach out. For_ Ruby  _to reach out. A hand extended outward, no - a claw. A limb that was not her own, she knew it wasn't, but seemed to come from her anyways._

_"Sapphire," she breathed. "My Sapphire?"_

_She ran. She ran in the endless expanse, ran on all fours, ran until her lungs and throat were on fire, ran until her limbs begged her to stop, and despite how she trembled and cried she continued to move. She ran and ran, unseeing, unknowing._

_And then she saw her. Saw the glassy surface that separated them. She stopped abruptly, chest heaving as she fought for breath, eyes wide as she stared at the only thing she could see in the blankness._

_"Ruby."_

_It was a marvel that she could even recognize the monster before her. And yet she was as beautiful as ever, pristine and perfect and_ hers.  _A single tear dropped down that lovely face, and a gloved hand pressed across the glass. She raised her own talons and matched her. They stood there like that for an eternity._

 _And then the glass cracked. The hand fell into her own and fingers laced with razor-sharp claws. There was a blinding light, and then nothing, and then_ everything.

.-.-.-.-.

Rainbow Quartz was nimble in a way that neither Pearl or Rose could ever be. Fast on her feet, flexible when weaving through the terrain, and quick to improvise whenever an unexpected obstacle tripped her up, she made her way to an abandoned battlefield.

Both the end and the beginning, she thought. Shaking off thoughts of the horrible event and the memory of white light and distressed screaming, she made her way to the stone pillar erected in the center of the battlefield. Rose had been right; something was different about the corruption. Where it had previously swirled and raged as if alive, it now lay dormant, the deceptive appearance of what seemed like fog only shifting when Rainbow's footsteps disturbed it.

Maybe one day, when the corruption lifted, she would plant a garden here. Strawberries, she thought. Strawberries would be lovely.

Her distractingly lovely thoughts were interrupted by a flash of yellow light somewhere up above, and she jerked her gaze upwards. A flickering light, bright, unsettling, shone at the top of the tower.

"That wasn't there before, was it?" she muttered to herself, a rhetorical question, before tightening her grip on both spear and shield and setting off.

Even with Rose's speed, the trek to the tower was much longer than Rainbow would have liked, and at any moment, she expected the light to go out, but it kept flickering away at the top. When she reached the base of the structure, she found the light still going, and a notable lack of a door or stairs. Sighing to herself - couldn't any of this be easy? - she crouched low, preparing herself, and then launched herself upward with powerful legs.

The air around her shifted before gravity could take hold, and then she was floating upward continuously, the wind streaming through her fluffy hair as she sped towards the top of the tower. Higher, higher still, the light slowly growing, until Rainbow could see that it filtered through the panels of a crystal dome at the very top. Her ascent slowed and she readied her spear, finding a gap carved into the stone just below the dome. She slipped silently inside.

She stood in an empty, circular room, made of a dark grey stone that contrasted with the white exterior of the tower. The only furnishing was a staircase along the wall leading upward. A bright yellow light shone from an unknown source beyond the stairs, the only light in the room Rainbow now stood in. She braced herself and, after testing the first step, snuck up the winding staircase.

She found the light was surprisingly warm now that she was close to it, rather than blinding, and poked her head into the room to find the source - and had to stifle her gasp.

Two figures stood in the room, one pacing, one crumpled to the floor. Both had their backs turned to the fusion. An orb in the center reminiscent of the moon base Rainbow knew so well was the source of the light, pulsing at seemingly random intervals. Perhaps it was some sort of code?

"I can keep going, Per," the crippled one mumbled weakly. She was a gorgeous blue, a trademark of her diamond, and her gem a beautiful teardrop between her shoulder blades. A lapis. They were rare, and Rainbow's breath caught in her throat. She'd never met one before. "We're here for a reason."

"No way," the other gem snapped, and Rainbow recognized her in an instant as a peridot, the lime green skin and blonde hair exclusive to her gem. Gen 2, to be exact, judging by the limb enhancers on her arms and legs. She stopped pacing and let out a growl, plopping onto the floor with the lapis and crossing her legs. "You're in no condition to stay, Lapis. I'm not letting you break just so we can get them their report a few days sooner! I won't risk that!"

 _Break?_  And then Rainbow saw it: the clear fracture in that stunning gem, the three-way split making the fusion's heart ache. She didn't know if these gems were friend or foe, but nobody deserved that kind of pain.

"And what if they punish us?" Lapis snapped, turning to face her companion, and Rainbow could see one of her eyes. They shone like mirrors. It sent a chill up her spine. "Yellow Diamond doesn't care what happens to me, Peridot! She's going to - if you call her - " She cut off, seemingly overwhelmed, and covered her face. Her voice cracked slightly.  _"Per . . ."_

"Lapis . . . " 'Per' sighed, and the little fingers of her limb enhancers poked at Lapis's hands until she relented and removed them. They moved to the blue gem's cheek, rubbing softly. She opened her mouth to speak, but clamped it shut a second later. There was nothing to be said, it seemed.

Rainbow clenched her fists, teeth grinding together. What could she do? What  _should_ she do? These gems were hostile, reporting to at least one Diamond, but Rose adamantly refused to hurt any gem that expressed the emotions they showed, and even Pearl was hesitant. These two weren't mindless Homeworld drones. And that lapis . . . who knew what would happen if they poofed her? They hadn't hurt a conscious gem since the corruption blast.

"Who's there?!"

_Shoot!_

Rainbow came out from hiding, spear at the ready, drawing up to her full height, roughly twice that of the peridot's. Said peridot had scrambled to her feet, placing herself in front of Lapis, with one of the limb enhancers pointed threateningly at the intruder. Lapis had scrambled backwards towards the orb, terror clear in the way those mirror eyes were stretched wide. Guilt sparked, but Rainbow knew she couldn't falter. She kept her voice low, posture ready for an attack but tone prepared to simply discuss.

"You're with Homeworld?" she interrogated, and Per narrowed her eyes, the visor over her eyes no doubt giving her specs and analyzing the for before her.

"You're not with Homeworld," she observed coldly. Reaching behind her with her free hand, she pressed her remote fingers against the glowing orb. The light intensified and then abruptly vanished. "Lapis, can you go?" Lapis nodded mutely.

"Hold on," Rainbow protested, "you can't go!"

"What, and get captured?" Per sneered. Her free hand helped Lapis stand, and then latched around her waist. "I'll make sure to include in my report a filthy fusion like you."

Rainbow couldn't hesitate any longer, bristling at the insult. She charged, spear thrusting forward, and aimed for the gem on the peridot's forehead. She was certain she would hit as she closed in - and then the duo was gone. Disoriented, she looked up, and found a set of breathtaking wings sprouting from Lapis's back, formed by water that appeared from seemingly nowhere, lifting the duo up and away from her.

"Stay away from us," Lapis warned, eyes showing a stunning reflection of Rainbow Quartz, and the fusion faltered at the unsettling sight. Then they were flying up, far away from Rainbow, shooting through an empty pane of the dome and out of sight.

She let the spear and shield dematerialize, groaning to herself. Great. Thwarted by her empathy. Her worst flaw, the Diamonds had told her, and damn it, they were right. Sighing, she turned to the orb, and, carefully, approached it.

It was a marbled silver, hovering over a small platform. The surface was completely smooth, and it was about the size of an average ruby guard. Rainbow wracked her brains for Pearl's knowledge, but even she was at a loss. Shaking her head, Rainbow moved away from it, making a mental note to inspect it more properly later before finding an empty pane to step through.

_Well, we learned absolutely nothing._

_Nothing except that the Diamonds are still interested in Earth, you mean._

After a slow descent to the ground, she made her way back to the demolished house, notably downcast at her failure. The pink barrier formed slowly around their home, and when it finished, Rainbow let out another dejected sigh and released her form.

"It'll be alright," Rose whispered against the top of Pearl's head, holding her close.

"I hope you're right," Pearl muttered, nuzzling into Rose's neck unabashedly.

They stood there for what could have been centuries, reluctant to part. Pearl never really slept, but she felt warm and safe in Rose's embrace. She bet she could get some of that human shut-eye like this. She allowed her eyes to close.

At that exact moment, a bright white light exploded from Pearl's study. The two of them flinched violently, taking one look at each other and then staring back at the doorway. They started for the room in an unspoken agreement, Pearl summoning two spears and Rose materializing her shield, side-by-side and ready to tackle whatever was inside - presumably, a corrupted gem that had managed to break free.

What they didn't expect to see was a brightly shining mass on the floor.

Pearl's grip on her weapons went slack, as did her jaw. Rose's eyes grew huge. They watched as the mass shifted and became two distinct forms, and two clear specks of color revealed a red and blue gem. The light grew brighter, brighter,  _brighter,_ until Rose and Pearl were forced to cover their eyes.

When the light faded and they looked once more, two reformed gems sat on the floor, staring up at them in scared bewilderment.


	4. Chapter 4

A ruby, short and tough, and a sapphire, small and fragile. Without a doubt, it was them - the fusion. Pearl's hands were trembling, and she tightened her grip on her spears to steady them before taking a step forward.

The effect was immediate. There was a flash of crimson and a feral snarl, and in an instant the ruby was in front of the sapphire on wobbly legs, arms thrown out in a protective stance. From behind her, a single watery blue eye blinked in slowly registering surprise. With a jolt, Pearl realized the ruby's eyes were locked onto her weapons, and, making eye contact, she allowed them to dematerialize. A quick glance to the side revealed Rose following suit with her shield.

Rose moved forward instead this time. The ruby's eyes went wide and then narrowed into slits, her hands clenching into fists. A heavy gauntlet formed on the right one.

"Don't hurt her!"

Rose hesitated, then knelt down. From her vantage point, she was now the same height as the newly reformed gem. Looking back, Rose gave Pearl a hopeful look, and her friend sighed, kneeling as well. The ruby took a step back and her foot nudged the sapphire, whose hands were held to her chest and whose eye was now covered by powder blue locks.

"We're not going to hurt either of you," Rose said gently, her smile intact, and Pearl gave a nod in agreement. "Nobody's going to hurt you here. You can see that, right, Your Clarity?"

The last part was directed at the sapphire, and she flinched slightly at being addressed. There was hesitation in her trembling shoulders, and, in a wave of cold air and a plume of white vapor, ice began forming on the floor beneath her. It spread slowly outward, and the ruby knelt beside her with wide-eyed concern.

"Your Clarity?" the ruby whispered urgently.

"Look," Rose prompted gently. "Will we hurt you?"

And then, with a shuddering breath, the sapphire shook her head. The ruby relaxed then, if only minutely, and she looked back at Rose and Pearl. Rose offered a friendly wave, and Pearl followed suit with an awkward little smile that she hoped was welcoming. The ruby crossed her arms, her threatening demeanor falling into something a tad more at ease. Pearl was surprised how easily the harsh atmosphere faded, though she supposed it was hard not to trust the word of a sapphire. The ruby didn't make eye contact, however, still looking uncomfortable.

"Well . . . if you're not going to hurt us, then - " The ruby scrambled for words, fingers digging into her arms. " - then what do you want?"

Rose went a little pink, smile slipping. "I . . . " She seemed surprised, at a loss for an answer. Pearl hurried to fill in for her.

"Answers!" she said in a rush, and the ruby jumped, even Rose looking back to stare at her with intrigue. Pearl blushed blue, speaking softer. "You - well, you two are the first gems to wake up."

The ruby cocked her head. "Wake up?" she echoed. Pearl and Rose exchanged glances, glances that their newly awakened friend did not seem to like. She bristled a little, closing her hands into fists against her hips. "What're those gloomy looks for? Stop being cryptic!"

"The corruption," Rose answered her quietly, gesturing upward.

In unison, the ruby and sapphire followed her hand, and a startled gasp left the red gem's lips. The sapphire pulled her bangs back from her eye, which was stretched wide in horror. She clasped a hand to her chest, whipping her head around to stare at Pearl and Rose.

"What . . . what did you do to them?" she whispered.

"Nothing!" Pearl was quick to defend, and realized it was a mistake when both of the small gems recoiled, the ruby narrowing her eyes and clenching her fists as though ready to attack. The ice beneath the sapphire spread faster, little spikes forming and raising upward like a barrier.

Rose held up her hands placatingly. "We didn't do this to them," she told them in the softest voice she could muster. It worked like a charm, the ruby relaxing in seconds and the ice stopping in its path. "The Diamonds did."

"The Diamonds?" the ruby asked, cocking her head. She looked back at the sapphire, who shook her head. "Who?"

"Wait, what?"Rose's calming tone was gone, replaced with something befuddled as Pearl's eyes went wide and narrowed in the same second. "You mean you don't know who they are?"

Sounding a little annoyed, the ruby replied, "No, we don't. What did they even do?"

"They set off a bomb, or spell, or  _something,"_ Pearl supplied. She hesitated, then stood. The ruby looked weary but allowed her to proceed. Pearl approached a bubble with a topaz inside, cupping it carefully in her palms and bringing it low so they could see. "It changed them into monsters. This is all we can do for them."

"It's like a deep sleep," Rose said reassuringly. "They don't feel a thing."

The shocked look that the ruby had taken during Pearl's explanation shattered, turning into something pained. She crossed her arms once more, though now it was more like she was holding herself. "It's not like that," she said sharply. "It's not like sleep at all."

Surprised, they were all silent for a moment. The seconds ticked past, and then, hesitantly, Rose asked, "What  _is_ it like, then?"

More silence between them, and then the ruby let out a frustrated noise, clutching at her head. The movement was so sudden that the sapphire flinched behind her.

"I . . . I don't know! I can't remember!"

"Hey, hey!" Pearl's heart sped up at the ruby's outburst, little alarm bells going off in her head. When rubies got confused, they got angry - and when rubies got angry, their rage got  _fiery._ Literally. She placed a hand on the ruby's shoulder, making her jump a little, but she kept mostly still. "It's alright! Don't be upset, okay? We can live without that knowledge."

"She's right," Rose agreed, finally standing as well. The ruby looked up from between her fingers, and both Pearl and Rose were startled to see tears pricking at her eyes. "What's important is the two of you are here, and you aren't monsters anymore. We should be celebrating!"

She ended with one of her bright smiles, the infectious ones that made Pearl feel a little too giddy. She nodded eagerly with her. "Right! We can worry about everything later. Let's just focus on getting you two acquainted!"

The ruby rubbed at her eyes, nodding. She turned back to the sapphire and offered a hand, and, hesitantly, the seer took it. She dusted her gown off carefully as she stood.

"I'm Ruby," the red gem said, stating the obvious. She seemed a little happier, and Pearl found she was rather happy for it. "This is - "

"Sapphire," the other gem supplied. "But you already knew that, I'm sure."

"It's still an honor, Your Clarity," Rose said warmly. "This is Pearl."

Pearl gave a little wave, cheeks going cyan, and Ruby squinted as though confused.

"Is she yours? A quartz soldier with a pearl?"

Heat consumed Pearl's face and she gritted her cheeks, indignation rising in her chest. Her, a belonging?! The nerve! "Why, you little - "

"No, she does not belong to anybody." Rose was calm as ever, reaching out a hand and setting it on Pearl's shoulder. Embarrassed, the thin gem went quiet. Ruby seemed confused, but did not question it, and for that Pearl was thankful.

"And you?"

"I'm Rose Quartz. You can just call me Rose, though." She grinned, big and beautiful, and Pearl's heart melted a little. "Welcome to Earth."

.-.-.-.-.

"Earth, huh?"

_It's kind of a dump. I guess beggars can't be choosers, though._

It could be worse, Ruby surmised, though she did not know much about the situation. All she knew was that they were stuck in this demolished, primitive structure, surrounded by a bubble to protect them from the  _corruption,_ whatever that was. She could see it when she looked outside, the fog cast in a pink hue from the shield. It swirled around the splintered steps and loomed just inches away from the bubble.

If she touched it, she would become something else. Something that wasn't her. It was what all those trapped gems were in Pearl's laboratory. Ruby shuddered to think about what it was like, knowing she was one of them once. Pearl had adamantly refused to pop a bubble to show her and promptly shoved her out of the lab and slammed the door.

Pearl was nice, but kind of a nark. Ruby did not know if that was a result of centuries of loneliness or just her personality, but she was not a fan. She sat at her desk all day and wrote a bunch of stuff Ruby did not understand, and when Ruby asked too many questions she got kicked out. Rose was nicer, but never around. She was always out in the world, somehow immune to the corruption. Ruby wished she could get out.

Pearl did give her information, though it was not much help filling in the gaps in her memory. There was Earth, this place, and there was another place far away - Homeworld. That was probably where Ruby and Sapphire were from, apparently. There was a war with gems on Earth and gems from Homeworld. One of the Diamonds, the big bad gems who were large and in charge on Homeworld,was killed in the war, and the other Diamonds decided to set off this big blast that destroyed the Earth's inhabitants and corrupted gems.

Pearl did not know whether Ruby and Sapphire took place in the war or merely served a Diamond, though she seemed to lean towards the latter. She seemed oddly hesitant to specify why, and finally simply offered that they were found together. Ruby knew it was not the whole truth, but could not find a place where a lie would fit, so gave up and accepted it.

Ruby had successfully gathered that they were far from home, though what home was,exactly, escaped her. This place was . . . homey enough, she supposed, for a house that was falling apart. Pearl said Earth was beautiful, once. That was why the war happened. Lots of gems liked Earth and wanted to destroy the Diamonds, and the Diamonds did not care for Earth and wanted to wipe it out.

Ruby could not tell who won that battle.

Sighing, Ruby stepped away from the bubble and back into what Pearl called a "living room," eyes falling on the blue gem settled on the "couch." Sapphire. She was just like any other sapphire, really, but she felt familiar. From what lore Pearl had told her, Ruby supposed it was not far-fetched to assume they knew each other before.

"What is it, Ruby?"

Ruby liked to bug Pearl and enjoyed her rare talks with Rose, but it was Sapphire she enjoyed being with most. There were things in her mind, not exactly memories; it was like a program, like they were things she knew the moment she came out of the dirt of some distant planet - like the fact that she came from the dirt of some distant planet.

These instincts, this  _programming_ told her a few basic things about what she was meant to do - guard, protect - and knew that she was assigned to this specific sapphire. She was familiar. She knew her. She was her guard, obviously.

"Thinking, I guess." She sat on the couch next to Sapphire, stretching out before crossing her legs and huffing. "What do we do now? We're kinda just stuck here for the rest of forever, aren't we?"

Sapphire listened. She always listened, calm and observant. Ruby guessed that when one had future vision, one never really got impatient. She gave Ruby her time, though, and it made her thankful. There was not much else to do.

She was quiet when she spoke, and the whole world stopped to listen. "Ruby, what do you remember from before?"

She answered the question with a question, and it caught Ruby off guard. She had tried so hard before to remember and was so certain that she knew nothing, but at Sapphire's urging, she felt a dire need to try harder. Still, reaching back yielded no results, and she shook her head.

"Nothing," she said, defeated. "All I know is that I belonged to you."

Sapphire tilted her head, thinking. Ruby wished she could see her face. She always hid her eye behind her hair. "What would you like to do now, Ruby?"

Ruby shrugged, a little flustered at the use of her name. Something told her that her charge usually would not address her like that. "Whatever you want, I guess."

"Then you can be my ruby guard," Sapphire said decisively, taking Ruby's hand and patting it. "And I'll be the all-seeing oracle."

Confused, Ruby asked, "But isn't that what we are anyways?"

Sapphire smiled, something solemn and a little sad, and Ruby wished she had not asked despite knowing it was likely not her fault. "It isn't anymore. It'll be just pretend, like everything is normal. Maybe . . . it'll help."

"Help?" And then Ruby burst out excitedly, "Help us remember!"

Sapphire gave a nod, raising her hand. She hesitated and, slowly, reached up and patted Ruby's head. It probably was not typical for a sapphire to do to her ruby, but the game had not yet started, so Ruby let herself enjoy it.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i don't know if i like this chapter, but here it is

"We have to follow up on that lapis and peridot."

A soft sigh, and Pearl rubbing her temples. Ruby watched as she and Rose conversed, curious. Sapphire sat on the couch once more. She faced forward, never seeming to truly look at anything, and Ruby wondered if she was listening in, too.

"We do, don't we? What about those two?" Ruby realized with a jolt that she was talking about her and her charge. Rose shrugged, smiling half-heartedly.

"I can hold the barrier long enough, with your help," she said, and Pearl's shoulders sagged. "Or we could keep them in the lab, but I know how you feel about that - "

"If it'll help you, I'll allow it," Pearl said immediately.

Rose's smile grew into something more genuine, and Ruby stared in fascination as the usually tense Pearl matched it. They always looked at each other like that - like there was nothing else in the world, in the  _universe_ that they would rather see. Had she ever felt that way about anyone before?

Ruby could not handle her curiosity any longer. Peering over the back of the couch, she asked loudly, "What're you two talking about?"

Pearl jumped a little, but Rose merely turned to face her with that soft smile of hers. It seemed to be her standard expression, gentle and serene, a contagious sort of calm. Ruby clambered up to sit on the back of the couch as Rose approached.

"There's . . . " She paused, as though picking her words carefully. "After the blast, we - Pearl and I - we were the only ones left. The only other survivors were Homeworld gems. I think Pearl filled you in on that?"

Pearl and Ruby both nodded. A glance behind her showed Sapphire inclining her head slightly. She was listening, too.

"We thought Homeworld had given up on Earth," Pearl said. "But last time we went out, that is, the night you two reformed - " Her face grew grim. " - we met two Homeworld gems. They were here under Diamond command."

"You know that for sure?" Ruby questioned, a smidge of unfamiliar discomfort creeping in her stomach. Pearl and Rose both nodded. "But why? If they left this place to die, then why come back for it? Hasn't it been, like, a million years?"

Pearl gave a vaguely amused snort, and Rose shook her head. "Six thousand," Rose corrected. Her smile faded. "And I think . . . I think it's because of Pink Diamond. I think they wanted to finish what she started. Yellow will want the resources on this planet, and Blue . . . "

There was something of a pained expression on Rose's face, and with a hand on her upper arm, Pearl picked up. "Blue Diamond was close to Pink. It's very likely she's come back for . . .  _personal_ reasons."

"She can't," Ruby blurted, and she had no clue why. Blue Diamond. The name gave her shivers. Or perhaps it was because the room had gotten so cold. A glance behind her showed Sapphire's gloved hands clenched into little fists.

Pearl let out a soft sigh of realization. She and Rose exchanged knowing glances. They did that all the time, and it gave Ruby anxiety. What did they know? Why did they keep everything such a secret between them?

"Of course," Rose said, casting her eyes downward, voice full of pity. "Sapphire. Blue Diamond's sapphire."

The words held so much weight. Everything was so heavy, and Ruby's chest felt constricted. She just wished she knew why. The atmosphere in the room chilled further with a sharp exhale from Sapphire and, instinctively, Ruby reached down to place a hand on her shoulder. Sapphire's hand rested atop hers a moment later and the temperature lowered a few degrees.

"You knew?"

Sapphire broke her silence, startling Ruby. She jerked her hand away abruptly and held it as though it had been burned. Ruby guards did not touch their Sapphires. Something deep in her gut told her this, scolded her for it - so why had it felt so natural?

"We speculated," Pearl replied, tone laced with guilt, and something else Ruby could not identify. "We'd heard some unfortunate news regarding Blue Diamond's sapphire, back during the war. That she'd made a terrible mistake, and Blue called for her shattering - and that she'd disappeared before it could happen."

That was not the full story. Ruby knew it, felt it, and yet Sapphire said nothing, so Ruby did not, either.

The house did not remain silent long. Pearl shook her head quickly and straightened up, placing her hands on her hips and looking up to Rose. Rose nodded back at her, and her standard serene smile returned.

"Shall we?" Pearl asked in a sweet tone that Ruby had never heard from her before. She felt as though she was intruding when Pearl offered a hand to Rose, who laced their fingers together and gave a self-conscious laugh. 

"It's been so long since we had an audience," she replied, looking a little flustered. Her cheeks were tinted with a pink that rivaled her hair.

Ruby, wide-eyed, reached down and patted urgently at Sapphire's shoulder until she turned around, not even caring how wrong it should have been. Both of them watched with growing curiosity as Pearl and Rose drew close, slowly circling one another. It was like a battle, but  _not,_  because they were smiling at each other, their eyes full of softness and hands gentle, no sign of weapons.

Ruby could not wrap her head around it.

A soft hum started up as they twirled, nearly imperceptible, and it took Ruby a moment to realize it was coming from Rose. Next to her, Sapphire's fingers were clenched in the couch cushion, mouth slightly ajar. It mirrored Ruby's own expression.

Pearl and Rose pressed close to one another, and once again Ruby was struck with the feeling that she was intruding on a very personal moment. Their foreheads resting together, Pearl gave a shy little smile, and, with a surprised shout from Ruby and a small gasp from Sapphire, pressed her lips to Rose's. 

Then there was light, so bright Ruby threw an arm over her eyes. She watched, eyes stretched wide and jaw dropping, as the gems reformed. The light made a form, and then the form was there in color, much larger than Rose or Pearl were individually. 

Startled, Ruby fell backwards onto the couch cushions with a yelp. She scrambled to peer over the back, heart racing. Who was this? Her mind supplied her the word  _fusion,_ but it did not explain much to her. Sapphire moved close to Ruby until the skin of their arms were touching. She was cold. 

The fused gem blinked rapidly with all four eyes, a soft pink blush on her face as she put a hand to her mouth. She swung her head around to look at the two gems on the couch. Before either could respond, the fusion let out a strangled noise, blush increasing, and covered her face with her hands.

"Oh my stars!" she squealed from behind her hands, crouching low and peeking through her fingers. "I am so sorry you saw that! I had no idea Pearl would do that, oh my stars, I'm so embarrassed - "

"Who  _are_  you?" Ruby blurted, standing up. Sapphire hesitated next to her but, sensing no danger, she followed suit. The huge gem blinked at her, hands falling from her face, before she blubbered again.

"Oh - how silly of me - you must forgive me, I haven't met anyone new in millenia!"The fusion offered her ginormous hand, and Ruby reached out and grasped a huge finger to shake it, fascinated. "I'm Rainbow Quartz."

"A fusion," Sapphire said, wonder in her words, and also accepted a brief handshake. What happened was starting to sink in, and Ruby bounced on her heels.

"How did you  _do_ that?" she demanded excitedly, hitting the back of the couch in an attempt to get out all her energy. This was so eventful compared to her life in the house so far that she did not know what to do with herself. "You just - I mean, Pearl and Rose? They just danced, and bam, you're there?!"

Rainbow Quartz straightened up, putting one hand on her hip and threading her other hand through her hair. It was so big and bouncy, like Rose's. "Well, there's more to it than that," she started, but Ruby cut her off.

"Because you're close, right?" She did not know where she got the information. Something instinctual, she figured, like how she knew she served Sapphire. "Because you care about each other a lot!"

Before Rainbow could respond, Sapphire spoke up in an awed tone. "Because you love each other," she said, not a guess, but a certainty. Rainbow flushed once more.

"L-Love?" She gave an embarrassed laugh, covering the lower half of her face, all four eyes looking away in embarrassment. "Well, hah, I don't know, it's a little more complicated than that . . . " She suddenly smiled down at them, clasping her hands together. "You two have done it, you know."

"We have?!" Ruby was too busy being excited to process it for a moment, looking over at Sapphire, whose face was impassive. A ruby fusing with her charge? That sounded like something that was not supposed to happen. Her face fell, and she quieted a little. "Wait, how do you know? Isn't that, I don't know - isn't that wrong?"

Rainbow shook her head vigorously. "Fusion isn't wrong," she said firmly. "It's only wrong if you don't want to do it." She bent down ruffled Ruby's hair with a gentle finger. "Fusion is a beautiful thing." 

She paused, as if thinking. Maybe Pearl and Rose were talking to each other in her head? Ruby wondered how that worked. 

"I'll tell you more about it later," Rainbow decided, straightening up once more. "I have things to take care of right now. You should be safe here while I'm gone, okay? I'll be back."

"Okay," Ruby replied, a little disappointed. They had fused? She wanted to know more. 

Next to her, Sapphire piped up, "Be safe."

They watched as Rainbow approached the bubble, phasing easily through it with nothing to show for it but a gentle ripple. She disappeared off into the haze of corruption after a brief wave to Ruby and Sapphire.

Ruby plopped down on the couch, and Sapphire slowly turned to take a seat as well. They were closer than Ruby knew they should be, but it seemed both were unwilling to move away. Sapphire had her hands clasped in her lap, but after a moment they fell to her sides as she looked up to the tattered ceiling. 

"We were fused once," she mumbled, and Ruby wished she could decipher the emotion in her tone. 

"What do you think about that?" she asked uncertainly, staring anxiously at Sapphire's profile. The seer shook her head.

"It's wrong," she said, looking down at her lap. "I'm an aristocrat. You're not. You're just a guard. Us fusing . . . I know it's wrong." She took a deep breath and turned to face Ruby. "But it doesn't feel wrong. It feels true."

Ruy let out a breath she did not know she was holding. She reached out, hesitant, and when Sapphire did not pull away, she brushed those powder blue bangs aside. That big, beautiful blue eye stared up at her, full of uncertainty and something akin to fear. Ruby wished she could do something about it. She felt so helpless, just wishing Sapphire would stop looking so sad, wishing she could fix what was bothering her.

"It does feel true," she whispered.

Sapphire looked down, away from Ruby. She hunched over and rested her forehead on Ruby's shoulder with a deep sigh. Ruby stiffened, unsure of what to do, and Sapphire reached for her hand - the one that did not have a gem. 

"Is this okay?" she asked, and she sounded so vulnerable that it sent a twinge of pain through Ruby's chest. She nodded, making an effort to relax, and let her cheek rest on Sapphire's head. Her hair was so soft, and Ruby fought hard not to nuzzle it. 

"Yeah," she breathed, as though if she spoke too loudly, she would scare Sapphire away. "It feels right. Like . . . "

She fumbled for the words. What was this feeling? Sapphire spoke for her.

"Like . . . I belong here."

Ruby could not help her smile. What was this feeling, blooming in her chest? Exhilaration? 

"Yeah. Like  _we_ belong here."


End file.
